Campbell Sees Big Year Ahead for Wideouts

Michigan wide receiver's coach Erik Campbell discusses Mario Manningham's progress, the maturation of Greg Mathews, his hopes for the incoming freshmen wideouts, and much much more.

Q: Talk about the progress that your unit made during the spring.

Erik Campbell: "Getting young guys ready to go was a main point
of the spring. With LaTerryal Savoy and Greg Mathews doing most of the work
in the spring, they made great progress and some great strides to become instrumental
for us in the passing game. And we’ve got a pretty good group coming back
with Adrian Arrington and Mario Manningham. With those guys it should be an
exciting year."

Q: We talked to Greg Mathews about being the No. 1 guy in the spring…

Erik Campbell: "Yeah, he found out what it takes to be a starter.
They say it’s easy to be a back up, but once you get put into that starting
role it’s a little bit different. His eyes were opened."

Q: Coach DeBord said after the spring that he’s a lot faster
this year…

Erik Campbell: "It’s a combination of work outs and knowing
what you’re doing out there. When you know what you’re doing out
there you move a lot faster. When you’re a young guy with your eyes all
big, you’re a little tentative out there on the field. It can be intimidating
playing out there in front of 112,000 fans."

Q: Going into next year, what are you expecting from Mario Manningham?

Erik Campbell: "I expect a great year. He’ll be back at
full strength come August. He sat out the spring, and we’re expecting
an outstanding season. The expectations don’t lower here at Michigan.
The standards stay high and it’s all about production. With a quarterback
like Chad Henne, he makes my job easier. "

Q: One of your staples has been growth from year-to-year. What did
you identify with Mario as things he needed to work on?

Erik Campbell: "There are some things we know we need to work
on, but we don’t tell those types of secrets (laughing). There are some
things we’re keeping private that he’s going to be working on this
offseason. He hasn’t peaked with his game and I think you can expect big
things out of him."

Q: What can we expect from the incoming wide receivers?

Erik Campbell: "Those guys are great athletes. I saw how Junior
Hemmingway plays basketball and saw how he took over a game. I saw Toney Clemons
also run track. We’ve got great athletes coming in and I wouldn’t
be shocked to see those guys getting on the field come August."